TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - The Florida College System Activities Association has released its weekly coaches' polls and announced its Weekly Awards in Volleyball and Cross Country.

October 16, 2023 Coaches' Polls

• Region 8 Volleyball Coaches' Polls (DI/DII)

Region 8 Players of the Week Awards (for events/matches October 9-15)

Congratulations to the following student-athletes who received Player of the Week recognition:

• Region 8 DI Volleyball Player of the Week: Alondra Alarcon, Florida SouthWestern
• Region 8 DI Volleyball Defensive Player of the Week: Mia Martinez, Miami Dade
• Region 8 DI Volleyball Setter of the Week: Luiza Da Cruz, Miami Dade
• Region 8 DII Volleyball Player of the Week: Kaylee Hunt, Lake-Sumter State
• Region 8 DII Volleyball Defensive Player of the Week: Jayden Ponsford, Lake-Sumter State
• Region 8 DII Volleyball Setter of the Week: Kiara Vega, Pensacola State
• Region 8 Men's Cross Country Runner of the Week: Dayton Law, Eastern Florida State
• Region 8 Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week: Carly Holadia, Seminole State

All Player of the Week honorees will be considered for NJCAA Player of the Week honors, which will be announced Wednesday. 

Visit Region 8 Player of the Week HQ to read more about this week's honorees.

Fall Sports Updates

• Volleyball
  • Division I: For the eighth straight week, the NJCAA Division I Poll is led by No. 1 Florida SouthWestern State College. Behind a win at then-No. 4 and now No. 6 Miami Dade College, Daytona State College jumped two spots to No. 14 and moved in front of No. 15 Polk State College. Eastern Florida State College is No. 16.
  • Division II: Pensacola State College rose two spots to No. 6 in the NJCAA Division II Poll. Gulf Coast State College is No. 16.
• Men's Soccer: Both Eastern Florida State and Daytona State moved up in NJCAA Division I Poll - Eastern Florida State to No. 5; Daytona State, to No. 9. That sets up a Top 10 showdown in Melbourne on Saturday when the teams meet for the second time this season. A win by Eastern Florida State clinches the Region 8 Championship for the Titans while a Falcons victory would force a third and deciding match back in Daytona Beach on October 25. 
• Women's Soccer
  • Division I: After two rainouts, the third time was the charm on Monday when Daytona State and Eastern Florida State finally got to play one another for the first time this fall. The Titans scored three second half goals to claim the 4-1 win. Just hours before kickoff, both teams maintained their rankings in the NJCAA Division I Poll - Daytona State was No. 4 and Eastern Florida State, No. 8, while Polk State received votes for the eighth straight week.
• Cross Country:
  • Women: Pasco-Hernando State College placed fourth at the Sunshine State Conference Preview meet, besting eighth-place South Florida State College and 11th-place Lake-Sumter State College. At the Florida Gateway College Invite, Seminole State College beat out the host Timberwolves in a tie-breaker to finish second. Florida State College at Jacksonville was fourth followed by the College of Central Florida. And at the Pensacola State College XC Open, the host Pirates beat Chipola College in what amounted to a dual meet. 
  • Men: Eastern Florida State (171) narrowly outscored Pasco-Hernando State (174) to finish in fifth place at the Sunshine State Conference Preview Meet. Lake-Sumter State placed tenth. Florida State College at Jacksonville took first place at the Florida Gateway Invite, finishing ahead of the host T-Wolves in team scoring. Seminole State participated but did not qualify for team scoring. 
• Women's Golf: Seminole State had a strong showing at the Pat Bradley Invitational, hosted by Florida International. The Raiders posted a team score of +23, finishing in fourth out of 12 teams. Daytona State was eight strokes back in seventh. 
• Men's Tennis: At the ITA Cup in Rome, Ga., Eastern Florida State's Hugo Car advanced to the Men's Singles Championship before falling to Glendale CC's Jean-Baptiste Badon in three sets (6-4, 2-6, 6-1).
• Women's Tennis: Hillsborough Community College's Yoana Dudova and Catherine Goldman advanced to the Women's Doubles Championship at the ITA Cup, but dropped the final match, 6-3 and 6-2 to Yerkezhan Arystanbekova of Cowley. Goldman also brought home a bronze medal in the Women's Singles. 

For more Player of the Week coverage, follow the FCSAA on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at "TheFCSAA."